1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:04,160 S1: This is faith and finance live. Live from Cuyahoga Valley 2 00:00:04,160 --> 00:00:06,439 S1: Christian Academy in Ohio. 3 00:00:14,440 --> 00:00:15,160 S2: So what if. 4 00:00:15,160 --> 00:00:18,680 S1: Retirement isn't the finish line, but a new assignment? Hi, 5 00:00:18,680 --> 00:00:22,640 S1: I'm Rob West. Many people spend years preparing financially for retirement, 6 00:00:22,640 --> 00:00:26,480 S1: but far fewer prepare for the purpose that follows. Today, 7 00:00:26,520 --> 00:00:30,680 S1: Dave Szafranski joins me to talk about retirement from a 8 00:00:30,680 --> 00:00:34,240 S1: biblical perspective. We're also, again, coming to you live from 9 00:00:34,240 --> 00:00:37,880 S1: Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy in Ohio, where we'll be taking 10 00:00:37,880 --> 00:00:40,400 S1: some questions from students here on campus a little later 11 00:00:40,400 --> 00:00:44,240 S1: in the broadcast. This is Faith and finance live. Biblical 12 00:00:44,240 --> 00:00:48,960 S1: wisdom for your financial journey. Well, for this first portion 13 00:00:48,960 --> 00:00:52,040 S1: of the broadcast today, our guest today here on campus 14 00:00:52,040 --> 00:00:55,200 S1: with us is Dave Szafranski. Dave is president and founder 15 00:00:55,200 --> 00:00:59,160 S1: of Edgewater Investment Group and the author of The Sin 16 00:00:59,160 --> 00:01:01,670 S1: of retirement. Dave, it's great to have you here. 17 00:01:01,710 --> 00:01:02,990 S3: Hey, thanks. It's good to be here. 18 00:01:02,990 --> 00:01:05,670 S1: I know you've, uh, are no stranger to Moody Radio. 19 00:01:05,709 --> 00:01:09,389 S1: You've been on these airwaves many, many times. Hundreds, in fact. 20 00:01:09,390 --> 00:01:11,470 S1: And so it's great to be here face to face 21 00:01:11,470 --> 00:01:14,270 S1: and on a campus that's really important to you in 22 00:01:14,270 --> 00:01:15,110 S1: this community. Right? 23 00:01:15,150 --> 00:01:18,550 S3: Yes. Uh, this is, uh, you know, I know this 24 00:01:18,550 --> 00:01:21,110 S3: school because you competed against the school that my kid 25 00:01:21,110 --> 00:01:27,750 S3: graduated from, Open door. And so we we would always say, oh, no, Cvca, 26 00:01:27,790 --> 00:01:29,350 S3: we're going to lose that game. 27 00:01:30,230 --> 00:01:31,870 S1: I love it. Well, I'll tell you, I drove up 28 00:01:31,870 --> 00:01:34,110 S1: and I couldn't believe it. As somebody who went to 29 00:01:34,150 --> 00:01:37,709 S1: a private Christian school. This place is amazing. And, uh, 30 00:01:37,709 --> 00:01:40,390 S1: we're delighted to be here. Uh, we're going to again 31 00:01:40,390 --> 00:01:42,670 S1: take some of the questions from the students from the 32 00:01:42,670 --> 00:01:44,950 S1: campus here a little later in the broadcast. But we 33 00:01:44,950 --> 00:01:47,190 S1: want to dive into this topic first. That I know 34 00:01:47,190 --> 00:01:49,470 S1: is something that's really important to you. You wrote a 35 00:01:49,470 --> 00:01:52,990 S1: book on it called The Sin of Retirement, a bit 36 00:01:52,990 --> 00:01:56,110 S1: of a provocative title for your book, maybe a challenging 37 00:01:56,110 --> 00:01:58,890 S1: one for some listeners. So just kind of frame this 38 00:01:58,890 --> 00:01:59,730 S1: up for us. 39 00:01:59,770 --> 00:02:02,650 S3: You know, I was reading the Book of Numbers one day, 40 00:02:02,890 --> 00:02:05,850 S3: and as I read through chapter eight, I realized that 41 00:02:05,850 --> 00:02:09,970 S3: God is forming a version of retirement that most people 42 00:02:09,970 --> 00:02:12,490 S3: don't think about. In fact, he tells the priests in 43 00:02:12,490 --> 00:02:16,450 S3: the temple that at age 50, they could stop sacrificing animals. 44 00:02:16,490 --> 00:02:18,810 S3: In essence, they could stop doing the heaviest kind of 45 00:02:18,850 --> 00:02:22,890 S3: lifting the the most labor intensive work. They could stop 46 00:02:22,889 --> 00:02:25,530 S3: that at age 50. But he doesn't stop there. He 47 00:02:25,530 --> 00:02:27,889 S3: continues on. He says, but I want you to stay 48 00:02:27,889 --> 00:02:29,650 S3: in the temple, and I want you to build into 49 00:02:29,650 --> 00:02:32,770 S3: the younger priests. I want you to teach them how 50 00:02:32,770 --> 00:02:35,890 S3: to be priests. And that led me. I thought, I've 51 00:02:35,889 --> 00:02:38,929 S3: never read this before, even though I've read it many times, 52 00:02:39,210 --> 00:02:41,609 S3: but it never struck me like it did at that moment. 53 00:02:41,610 --> 00:02:43,690 S3: I really think God laid it on my heart as 54 00:02:43,690 --> 00:02:46,930 S3: a as a vision for the retirement that we're supposed 55 00:02:46,930 --> 00:02:49,410 S3: to have is at some point we're going to stop 56 00:02:49,730 --> 00:02:52,090 S3: the heavy labor. You know, if you're an airline pilot 57 00:02:52,090 --> 00:02:54,209 S3: at age 65, you have to stop. Yeah. You can't 58 00:02:54,210 --> 00:02:56,840 S3: fly anymore. So what do you do next? Well, you're 59 00:02:56,840 --> 00:02:59,160 S3: going to continue to build into people. You're going to 60 00:02:59,160 --> 00:03:02,119 S3: continue your walk, you're going to continue your faith walk, 61 00:03:02,400 --> 00:03:04,280 S3: and you're going to instill that in other people. And 62 00:03:04,280 --> 00:03:07,160 S3: that's what I think the biblical call for retirement really is. 63 00:03:07,160 --> 00:03:09,240 S1: I love that it's the picture we see in God's 64 00:03:09,240 --> 00:03:12,480 S1: Word of the elder at the city gate, engaged in 65 00:03:12,480 --> 00:03:16,560 S1: conversation and mentoring the next generation. And what you're describing 66 00:03:16,560 --> 00:03:20,239 S1: is not as much about the stoppage of income. It's 67 00:03:20,240 --> 00:03:23,840 S1: really that retirement from purpose and calling that we can 68 00:03:23,840 --> 00:03:27,040 S1: slip into when we buy into the cultural perspective. So 69 00:03:27,080 --> 00:03:28,160 S1: walk us through that. 70 00:03:28,680 --> 00:03:31,840 S3: You know, I mentioned a commercial that I saw one 71 00:03:31,840 --> 00:03:33,839 S3: time in the book and it's this couple and they're 72 00:03:33,840 --> 00:03:37,560 S3: a lovely couple. They're obviously retired, and I don't really 73 00:03:37,560 --> 00:03:39,720 S3: like the commercial because the guy in the commercial has 74 00:03:39,720 --> 00:03:41,400 S3: way too much hair for a guy his age. So 75 00:03:41,400 --> 00:03:44,600 S3: I don't believe it's real. And they're walking along a 76 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:47,920 S3: beach and you know, his wife is there and she's, 77 00:03:48,160 --> 00:03:50,640 S3: you know, dressed to the nines on the beach and, 78 00:03:50,880 --> 00:03:52,880 S3: and they're throwing a ball to a dog, and the 79 00:03:52,880 --> 00:03:56,100 S3: dog actually brings the ball back. My dog never does that, 80 00:03:56,100 --> 00:03:59,060 S3: so I even I'm even liking the commercial less. But 81 00:03:59,100 --> 00:04:01,860 S3: the image that you're left with is that this is 82 00:04:01,860 --> 00:04:05,700 S3: their life. And they've they've retired. They've made it. They've 83 00:04:05,740 --> 00:04:09,580 S3: achieved financial success. Now they want for nothing and they're 84 00:04:09,580 --> 00:04:12,619 S3: going to do nothing. And I think that is a 85 00:04:12,620 --> 00:04:16,660 S3: very empty version of the retirement that believers should be 86 00:04:16,660 --> 00:04:20,779 S3: thinking about, because we're not really stopping work. We're really 87 00:04:20,779 --> 00:04:24,140 S3: just kind of reloading and transitioning to something else. And 88 00:04:24,140 --> 00:04:26,420 S3: that's a biblical calling. That could be all the things 89 00:04:26,420 --> 00:04:28,940 S3: that we couldn't do while we were working, like a 90 00:04:28,980 --> 00:04:32,659 S3: short term mission trip, leading children's church, all these things 91 00:04:32,660 --> 00:04:35,779 S3: where we could be building into people with the time, 92 00:04:35,820 --> 00:04:39,100 S3: talent and wisdom God has allowed us. We're not supposed 93 00:04:39,100 --> 00:04:40,980 S3: to die with it. We're supposed to leave it here. 94 00:04:40,980 --> 00:04:44,260 S1: So it's retiring to something and not from something. Because 95 00:04:44,260 --> 00:04:46,340 S1: this is the season we have the most wisdom, the 96 00:04:46,339 --> 00:04:49,660 S1: most experience to pour into others. The last thing we 97 00:04:49,660 --> 00:04:51,739 S1: want to do is hang that up on the shelf 98 00:04:51,740 --> 00:04:53,890 S1: and just collect seashells, right? 99 00:04:53,930 --> 00:04:54,490 S3: Exactly. 100 00:04:54,529 --> 00:04:59,049 S1: Exactly right. Dave Szafranski here. We're live from Cuyahoga Valley 101 00:04:59,050 --> 00:05:03,250 S1: Christian Academy in Ohio today. And delighted to be coming 102 00:05:03,290 --> 00:05:05,970 S1: to you from this beautiful part of the country. We'll 103 00:05:05,970 --> 00:05:08,730 S1: be taking some questions from students a little later. Also, 104 00:05:08,730 --> 00:05:11,409 S1: when we come back, we'll continue to unpack this idea 105 00:05:11,410 --> 00:05:15,290 S1: of a biblical retirement. Looking at those Levitical priests, what 106 00:05:15,290 --> 00:05:17,450 S1: can we take away from the Book of Numbers? And 107 00:05:17,450 --> 00:05:21,770 S1: then what might a roadmap for a biblical retirement look like? 108 00:05:21,810 --> 00:05:23,890 S1: Much more to come just around the corner on faith 109 00:05:23,890 --> 00:05:25,650 S1: and finance. Live. Stick around. 110 00:05:33,250 --> 00:05:34,450 S2: This is faith and finance. 111 00:05:34,450 --> 00:05:37,770 S1: Live. I'm Rob West. We're at Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy 112 00:05:37,770 --> 00:05:44,530 S1: today in Ohio. That's right. We have some incredible moody 113 00:05:44,529 --> 00:05:49,210 S1: radio listeners here. We have students from Cvca. I understand 114 00:05:49,210 --> 00:05:52,710 S1: the financial algebra classes here. They're in the. They're in 115 00:05:52,710 --> 00:05:55,510 S1: the back of the room. Yeah. They're busy. They're they've 116 00:05:55,510 --> 00:05:58,630 S1: got their textbooks out or something right now. No. We're 117 00:05:58,630 --> 00:06:02,589 S1: glad you're here. And Dave Szafranski is here. Dave is, uh, 118 00:06:02,710 --> 00:06:05,950 S1: local advisor. But somebody who just loves Moody Radio has 119 00:06:05,950 --> 00:06:08,909 S1: been on these airwaves for many years. And, Dave, your 120 00:06:08,910 --> 00:06:11,150 S1: book is called The Sin of Retirement. Before the break, 121 00:06:11,150 --> 00:06:14,270 S1: we were talking about just this biblical view that we 122 00:06:14,270 --> 00:06:17,510 S1: see beginning with the living God, the I can get 123 00:06:17,510 --> 00:06:21,270 S1: that out, the Levitical priests in numbers. Uh, but during 124 00:06:21,270 --> 00:06:23,270 S1: the break, you and I were talking about the season 125 00:06:23,310 --> 00:06:27,870 S1: of preparation for retirement. That really should begin years before 126 00:06:27,870 --> 00:06:28,630 S1: you get there. 127 00:06:28,670 --> 00:06:33,750 S3: Absolutely. And I recommend that people look at planning for retirement. 128 00:06:33,790 --> 00:06:36,150 S3: You're planning for retirement your whole life. You're saving a 129 00:06:36,150 --> 00:06:39,310 S3: 401 and Roth IRAs and all these other things. But 130 00:06:40,029 --> 00:06:43,790 S3: looking at your retirement budget should really start about five 131 00:06:43,830 --> 00:06:47,590 S3: years before you get to your retirement budget, because most 132 00:06:47,589 --> 00:06:51,420 S3: people come in and they underestimate what they're actually spending. 133 00:06:51,420 --> 00:06:52,900 S3: And this is one of the reasons why I talk 134 00:06:52,940 --> 00:06:55,940 S3: about budget so much. In fact, for me, it's one 135 00:06:55,940 --> 00:06:58,339 S3: of the five pillars of financial planning. You have to 136 00:06:58,380 --> 00:07:00,100 S3: know what you're living on. You have to know what 137 00:07:00,100 --> 00:07:02,700 S3: it cost to live each month. And so about five 138 00:07:02,700 --> 00:07:04,500 S3: years before you get there, we're going to say, well, 139 00:07:04,500 --> 00:07:08,140 S3: let's experiment with your retirement budget a little bit. Let's see. 140 00:07:08,180 --> 00:07:10,780 S3: You know, on paper, if you could actually live on 141 00:07:10,820 --> 00:07:12,380 S3: that budget and you say, well, you know, I'm not 142 00:07:12,380 --> 00:07:14,380 S3: going to be driving to work or buying work clothes, 143 00:07:14,380 --> 00:07:17,820 S3: but trust me, we find a way to fill in 144 00:07:17,820 --> 00:07:20,740 S3: other things when there's a little extra money in the budget. 145 00:07:20,740 --> 00:07:23,220 S3: So I want to give people a test run. Let's 146 00:07:23,220 --> 00:07:25,820 S3: do a beta test on this thing and and see 147 00:07:25,820 --> 00:07:27,820 S3: how it works. And if it doesn't work, we've got 148 00:07:27,820 --> 00:07:31,860 S3: some time to make some adjustments. And usually most everybody 149 00:07:31,900 --> 00:07:33,500 S3: is going to make a few adjustments. 150 00:07:33,540 --> 00:07:36,540 S1: Yeah, there's the dry run for your budget. There's also 151 00:07:36,580 --> 00:07:38,580 S1: the dry run for how am I going to use 152 00:07:38,580 --> 00:07:41,660 S1: my time. You know, one of my mentors, Ron Blue, 153 00:07:41,700 --> 00:07:45,500 S1: the author and teacher, uh, when he retired the first time, 154 00:07:45,500 --> 00:07:48,020 S1: I think he's gone back to work three different times 155 00:07:48,020 --> 00:07:50,690 S1: on different assignments the Lord has given him. But his 156 00:07:50,690 --> 00:07:53,450 S1: wife Judy said, a bit tongue in cheek. But she said, Ron, 157 00:07:53,490 --> 00:07:55,690 S1: you know I married you for better or worse, but 158 00:07:55,690 --> 00:07:59,730 S1: not for lunch. And they had a great conversation after 159 00:07:59,730 --> 00:08:01,890 S1: that about just how are we going to prepare for 160 00:08:01,890 --> 00:08:04,090 S1: this time that we're going to have together that they 161 00:08:04,090 --> 00:08:07,530 S1: were looking forward to? But it was different. How do 162 00:08:07,530 --> 00:08:09,290 S1: you prepare for that side of it? 163 00:08:09,330 --> 00:08:12,210 S3: Well, I had somebody come into my office type A, 164 00:08:12,250 --> 00:08:14,370 S3: he and his wife are both type A and he's retiring. 165 00:08:14,370 --> 00:08:16,130 S3: And he said, David, I figured out what I'm going 166 00:08:16,130 --> 00:08:17,690 S3: to do for the first year. And I said, oh, 167 00:08:17,690 --> 00:08:19,650 S3: what is that? He said, I'm going to do nothing. 168 00:08:20,370 --> 00:08:21,890 S3: And I said, you know, I think that could be 169 00:08:21,890 --> 00:08:24,290 S3: the worst idea I've heard all year. I said, there's 170 00:08:24,290 --> 00:08:26,650 S3: just not how we're built. And I think, you know, 171 00:08:26,890 --> 00:08:29,770 S3: the things that you're interested in. And one of the 172 00:08:29,770 --> 00:08:31,690 S3: things that I've done as a Christian, as a believer, 173 00:08:31,690 --> 00:08:34,370 S3: is I've always wondered, where does God really want me? 174 00:08:34,770 --> 00:08:37,170 S3: And I would talk to my pastor about this. And 175 00:08:37,170 --> 00:08:40,210 S3: the answer is generally, well, it's probably something that you're 176 00:08:40,210 --> 00:08:42,650 S3: already doing, something that you're you're good at, that you 177 00:08:42,650 --> 00:08:44,730 S3: find joy in, that you love to do, that you 178 00:08:44,730 --> 00:08:48,030 S3: look forward to. Look for those things in your life 179 00:08:48,030 --> 00:08:50,870 S3: that can build the kingdom. And and I'd like to 180 00:08:50,870 --> 00:08:52,990 S3: talk about short term mission trips. I think everybody should 181 00:08:52,990 --> 00:08:55,709 S3: go on a short term mission trip. Not necessarily with me, 182 00:08:55,710 --> 00:08:57,870 S3: because you could do it right here, right in town. 183 00:08:58,030 --> 00:09:00,310 S3: I go to Brazil to do them, but you could 184 00:09:00,309 --> 00:09:04,470 S3: do them anywhere. I would look for opportunities to invest 185 00:09:04,470 --> 00:09:08,870 S3: in something spiritually that that's going to last for generations. 186 00:09:09,070 --> 00:09:09,910 S3: That's what I would do. 187 00:09:09,950 --> 00:09:13,790 S1: Yeah. What about somebody who's even earlier in their work career? 188 00:09:13,830 --> 00:09:16,070 S1: Maybe they're in their 30s and 40s. How do you 189 00:09:16,110 --> 00:09:20,470 S1: counsel them to even then start developing this proper view 190 00:09:20,470 --> 00:09:22,470 S1: of what that fourth quarter will look like? 191 00:09:22,950 --> 00:09:25,110 S3: Well, it always begins with, how are we going to 192 00:09:25,110 --> 00:09:27,390 S3: finance it? It's very important to know where the money 193 00:09:27,390 --> 00:09:28,710 S3: is going to come from. How are we going to 194 00:09:28,710 --> 00:09:31,709 S3: do this? So we're planning we're integrating things like your 195 00:09:31,710 --> 00:09:34,750 S3: 401 and your other retirement plans that you're saving for. 196 00:09:35,270 --> 00:09:38,750 S3: And I always encourage people you have to live on 197 00:09:38,750 --> 00:09:41,110 S3: less than what you're making. It doesn't matter what season 198 00:09:41,110 --> 00:09:43,030 S3: you're in. And I you know, people say, well what 199 00:09:43,030 --> 00:09:45,350 S3: is that number? Is it 99%? No, I think it's 200 00:09:45,350 --> 00:09:48,340 S3: like 80%. If you could live on and you're and 201 00:09:48,340 --> 00:09:51,860 S3: you're giving you're doing these things and you're finding your interest, 202 00:09:51,900 --> 00:09:54,500 S3: you know, things that you have that have had an 203 00:09:54,500 --> 00:09:56,620 S3: impact in your life, what are those things that you 204 00:09:56,620 --> 00:09:59,580 S3: could do in retirement also? But the worst thing you 205 00:09:59,580 --> 00:10:00,500 S3: could do is nothing. 206 00:10:00,540 --> 00:10:04,020 S1: Yeah. As you began to unpack this story in the 207 00:10:04,020 --> 00:10:07,580 S1: book of numbers, in God's Word, uh, around this model 208 00:10:07,580 --> 00:10:09,740 S1: for retirement, what are some of the things you took 209 00:10:09,740 --> 00:10:12,980 S1: away from the scriptures that we can we can apply here? 210 00:10:13,540 --> 00:10:17,059 S3: Well, the first thing is we're we're never called to 211 00:10:17,100 --> 00:10:20,900 S3: really stop. Now we are called to rest. God invented rest. 212 00:10:20,940 --> 00:10:23,540 S3: In fact, on the seventh day, he rested. And I 213 00:10:23,540 --> 00:10:26,380 S3: was doing an interview with the Morning Show on Moody. 214 00:10:26,380 --> 00:10:29,820 S3: And they said, well, are you against leisure? And I said, well, 215 00:10:29,820 --> 00:10:31,939 S3: I'm actually talking to you from a beach in Saint 216 00:10:31,940 --> 00:10:33,940 S3: Croix right now. So the answer would be a solid 217 00:10:33,940 --> 00:10:36,660 S3: no for that. Right. And I think it's important to, 218 00:10:37,100 --> 00:10:39,980 S3: you know, I have drive I want to continue. I 219 00:10:40,020 --> 00:10:43,059 S3: never want to truly retire. I don't think I will, 220 00:10:43,700 --> 00:10:46,160 S3: but it's also important to have a balance in there, too. 221 00:10:46,200 --> 00:10:49,120 S3: It's important to rest. It's important to take time to recharge. 222 00:10:49,520 --> 00:10:52,240 S3: And I and I think coming out of numbers, what 223 00:10:52,240 --> 00:10:55,520 S3: what really drew me to this book was that I 224 00:10:55,520 --> 00:10:58,360 S3: think we just have a backwards view of retirement that 225 00:10:58,360 --> 00:11:00,959 S3: the world has provided for us, and I don't want 226 00:11:00,960 --> 00:11:02,840 S3: to give that to people. I think it's a lie, 227 00:11:03,440 --> 00:11:05,920 S3: and I think it's an empty promise of the future. 228 00:11:05,920 --> 00:11:09,480 S3: That is, it doesn't really exist. Yeah, and I have 229 00:11:09,480 --> 00:11:11,560 S3: friends that love to golf. I love the golf. I'm 230 00:11:11,559 --> 00:11:14,840 S3: a horrible golfer, by the way. So they they go 231 00:11:14,840 --> 00:11:16,360 S3: on these golf trips and we went on a golf 232 00:11:16,360 --> 00:11:18,679 S3: trip one time and we're golfing and golfing and golfing 233 00:11:18,679 --> 00:11:22,160 S3: and I thought I could do this for three days easy, 234 00:11:22,160 --> 00:11:23,760 S3: but I can't do it for the rest of my life. 235 00:11:23,760 --> 00:11:25,679 S3: There's just too many things that we have to do 236 00:11:25,679 --> 00:11:29,480 S3: that we want to do that God calls us to do. So. 237 00:11:29,520 --> 00:11:32,800 S3: Is golf good? Yeah, sure it is. Not with me. Uh, 238 00:11:33,400 --> 00:11:35,040 S3: I would go off with you, Rob, but, you know, 239 00:11:35,040 --> 00:11:37,160 S3: you're not going to want to golf with me. Uh, 240 00:11:37,160 --> 00:11:40,080 S3: but over time, we have to be building into the kingdom. 241 00:11:40,120 --> 00:11:42,949 S1: Yeah, we have a lot of listeners who are right 242 00:11:42,990 --> 00:11:46,229 S1: on the precipice of retirement. You know, they're looking toward 243 00:11:46,230 --> 00:11:48,630 S1: a year or two years out. What's one thing they 244 00:11:48,630 --> 00:11:50,069 S1: can do today to prepare? 245 00:11:51,309 --> 00:11:54,630 S3: Get a snapshot of exactly where you are right now. Uh, 246 00:11:54,630 --> 00:11:58,470 S3: if you qualify for Social Security, get your Social Security benefits, 247 00:11:58,510 --> 00:12:01,670 S3: know what's coming in when you're going to be retired 248 00:12:01,670 --> 00:12:03,910 S3: in 12 months, because this is really important. This is 249 00:12:03,910 --> 00:12:06,190 S3: how we plan your budget. This is how we decide, 250 00:12:06,910 --> 00:12:09,070 S3: can I take a month in Florida? Can I take 251 00:12:09,070 --> 00:12:12,310 S3: two months in Florida? Can I? We're in Ohio right now. 252 00:12:12,350 --> 00:12:15,350 S3: Florida is very compelling at this moment in time, even 253 00:12:15,350 --> 00:12:17,830 S3: though it's a little warmer today, this has been the 254 00:12:17,830 --> 00:12:20,510 S3: longest winter of my life. In fact, you guys in 255 00:12:20,510 --> 00:12:22,310 S3: the algebra class, at some point you're going to say, 256 00:12:22,309 --> 00:12:26,750 S3: remember that winter in 2026? That was brutal. Uh, these 257 00:12:26,750 --> 00:12:28,510 S3: are the things that we need to prepare for. What 258 00:12:28,510 --> 00:12:31,270 S3: do you want retirement to look like? And so we 259 00:12:31,270 --> 00:12:34,070 S3: can get a little bit of a snapshot and say, yeah, 260 00:12:34,070 --> 00:12:36,270 S3: that's achievable. We can do these things or no, I 261 00:12:36,270 --> 00:12:37,830 S3: think we need to replan that one. 262 00:12:37,870 --> 00:12:40,310 S1: Yeah. You know, at the foundation of everything we talk 263 00:12:40,350 --> 00:12:42,610 S1: about on this program is this idea that God owns 264 00:12:42,610 --> 00:12:46,010 S1: everything and we're stewards, we're stewards of our financial resources, 265 00:12:46,010 --> 00:12:50,250 S1: but we're also stewards of our time, our relationships, God's word. 266 00:12:50,290 --> 00:12:52,970 S1: This is really a stewardship issue at its core, isn't it? 267 00:12:53,170 --> 00:12:55,970 S3: It is because our time is the it's the one 268 00:12:55,970 --> 00:12:58,530 S3: thing that we all have. The exact amount the same 269 00:12:58,570 --> 00:13:01,090 S3: of is time, right? Other people have different money. They 270 00:13:01,090 --> 00:13:03,170 S3: have different jobs, they have different amounts of kids. But 271 00:13:03,170 --> 00:13:06,650 S3: we have 24 hours a day, 165 hours in a week. 272 00:13:06,650 --> 00:13:08,730 S3: How are we going to 168 hours in a week? 273 00:13:09,090 --> 00:13:10,569 S3: How are we going to use it? Are we going 274 00:13:10,610 --> 00:13:12,890 S3: to waste it? And in the book I talk about 275 00:13:12,890 --> 00:13:15,890 S3: somebody that I had met and they retired and a 276 00:13:15,890 --> 00:13:17,650 S3: great guy, great family. And I said, so what are 277 00:13:17,650 --> 00:13:20,010 S3: you going to do now? Said, well, I'm going to 278 00:13:20,010 --> 00:13:21,770 S3: sit in this chair and I'm going to eat a 279 00:13:21,770 --> 00:13:24,970 S3: baker's square pie every day. And that's what he did. 280 00:13:25,170 --> 00:13:26,930 S3: He sat in a chair and he ate a baker's 281 00:13:26,929 --> 00:13:30,170 S3: square pie every single day. And guess where they found him? 282 00:13:30,690 --> 00:13:33,370 S3: In that chair with the Baker Square pie. He had 283 00:13:33,370 --> 00:13:36,090 S3: never achieved anything after retirement. I think of all the 284 00:13:36,090 --> 00:13:38,730 S3: things that we could have done. That's what we went 285 00:13:38,730 --> 00:13:40,800 S3: out with. I just think it's an empty promise. 286 00:13:40,840 --> 00:13:43,839 S1: Yeah. So the idea here is rest is good. Maybe 287 00:13:43,840 --> 00:13:47,400 S1: even a season of sabbatical. Rest extended. God is the 288 00:13:47,400 --> 00:13:51,120 S1: author of that. Finding healthy rhythms of enjoying the season 289 00:13:51,160 --> 00:13:55,920 S1: of life, but also investing in the kingdom, investing in people. Right? 290 00:13:55,960 --> 00:13:56,640 S3: Exactly. 291 00:13:56,679 --> 00:13:56,839 S1: Yeah. 292 00:13:56,880 --> 00:13:59,679 S3: You have to contend that never stops. That calling never stops. 293 00:13:59,679 --> 00:14:02,360 S1: I love it, it's a beautiful picture. Dave Szafranski here. 294 00:14:02,360 --> 00:14:05,840 S1: He's the author of The Sin of Retirement. We're here 295 00:14:05,840 --> 00:14:09,640 S1: from Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy in Ohio. Today, we're going 296 00:14:09,679 --> 00:14:12,520 S1: to be, uh, taking some questions from students here on 297 00:14:12,520 --> 00:14:15,439 S1: campus that they submitted earlier in the day just around 298 00:14:15,440 --> 00:14:17,720 S1: the corner. Stick around. We'll be back with much more. 299 00:14:32,440 --> 00:14:35,320 S4: The opinions offered during this program represent the personal or 300 00:14:35,320 --> 00:14:39,630 S4: professional opinions of the participants given for informational purposes only. 301 00:14:39,670 --> 00:14:42,950 S4: Any information provided is not intended to replace advice from 302 00:14:42,950 --> 00:14:46,710 S4: a financial, medical, legal or other professional who understands your 303 00:14:46,710 --> 00:14:48,150 S4: specific situation. 304 00:14:54,430 --> 00:14:56,110 S1: Great to have you with us today on Faith and 305 00:14:56,110 --> 00:14:59,790 S1: finance live. We're live from Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy in 306 00:14:59,790 --> 00:15:07,590 S1: Ohio today. Awesome group of students here today, local listeners 307 00:15:07,590 --> 00:15:10,150 S1: to Moody Radio, and we're thrilled to have them in 308 00:15:10,150 --> 00:15:13,430 S1: our live studio audience today. Dave Szafranski joining me on 309 00:15:13,430 --> 00:15:16,670 S1: set today. Dave is an advisor here in town, president 310 00:15:16,670 --> 00:15:19,630 S1: and founder of Edgewater Investment Group. He's the author of 311 00:15:19,830 --> 00:15:23,070 S1: The Sin of Retirement. We've been talking about a biblical 312 00:15:23,070 --> 00:15:26,150 S1: view of retirement. Dave is no stranger to Moody Radio, 313 00:15:26,150 --> 00:15:28,910 S1: been on these airwaves for many, many years, and you 314 00:15:28,910 --> 00:15:31,350 S1: actually go all the way back to Larry Burkett, right? 315 00:15:31,390 --> 00:15:32,710 S3: I do, yes. 316 00:15:32,750 --> 00:15:33,510 S1: You and Larry knew. 317 00:15:33,550 --> 00:15:36,310 S3: Much younger than I. Yes. I'm only like 45 ish, 318 00:15:36,330 --> 00:15:37,650 S3: so I started early. 319 00:15:38,650 --> 00:15:40,250 S1: We're glad to have you here, Dave. I know you're 320 00:15:40,250 --> 00:15:42,970 S1: going to stick around. And we had some questions that 321 00:15:42,970 --> 00:15:46,850 S1: students submitted. So from the economics class, a few other classes, 322 00:15:46,850 --> 00:15:49,410 S1: they submitted some questions. And we're going to talk through 323 00:15:49,410 --> 00:15:52,850 S1: a few of these. These are just really thoughtful questions. 324 00:15:52,850 --> 00:15:55,690 S1: I appreciated each one of them. Here's the first one Dave. 325 00:15:55,690 --> 00:15:58,530 S1: This one came from Emily Cook. And she said, how 326 00:15:58,530 --> 00:16:01,370 S1: can I efficiently spend my money as a high school 327 00:16:01,370 --> 00:16:05,290 S1: student who is social, so she enjoys spending time with 328 00:16:05,290 --> 00:16:08,130 S1: friends and going out? She says, is it wrong to 329 00:16:08,130 --> 00:16:11,290 S1: go out for fast food with my friends? And you know, 330 00:16:11,330 --> 00:16:13,730 S1: here's my take on it. I'd love yours as well. 331 00:16:14,090 --> 00:16:16,330 S1: First of all, there's nothing wrong with spending money on 332 00:16:16,330 --> 00:16:19,010 S1: social activities. You know, in Scripture, one of the things 333 00:16:19,010 --> 00:16:21,370 S1: we see related to our use of God's money is 334 00:16:21,370 --> 00:16:25,170 S1: this idea of enjoyment. It's part of God's design. You know, 335 00:16:25,210 --> 00:16:28,210 S1: the God who's the author of joy and delight also 336 00:16:28,210 --> 00:16:32,450 S1: made us money managers over his resources, so we should 337 00:16:32,450 --> 00:16:35,640 S1: enjoy them. I think the key is what I'll call 338 00:16:35,680 --> 00:16:40,120 S1: maybe balance and intention. And here's what I mean by that. 339 00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:43,120 S1: You set a limit on your spending so it doesn't 340 00:16:43,120 --> 00:16:47,600 S1: crowd out your giving and your saving. You plan ahead 341 00:16:47,600 --> 00:16:51,480 S1: so you can enjoy those moments freely. Enjoy a great 342 00:16:51,480 --> 00:16:55,920 S1: meal with some friends, laughing, and building community. But you're 343 00:16:55,920 --> 00:16:58,640 S1: still doing it in light of a plan. So now 344 00:16:58,640 --> 00:17:01,640 S1: we're not feeling guilty, but we've got something left for 345 00:17:01,640 --> 00:17:05,240 S1: those things that are really important. Because remember why stewardship 346 00:17:05,240 --> 00:17:09,920 S1: isn't about being completely devoid of joy. It's about receiving 347 00:17:09,920 --> 00:17:14,480 S1: God's gifts with thankfulness, remembering who they belong to, and 348 00:17:14,480 --> 00:17:17,679 S1: stewarding them wisely for God's glory. But what would you 349 00:17:17,680 --> 00:17:18,120 S1: add to that? 350 00:17:18,160 --> 00:17:21,639 S3: Well, I love the fact that they're thinking about where 351 00:17:21,640 --> 00:17:23,879 S3: should I be spending my money? And, you know, starting 352 00:17:23,920 --> 00:17:27,440 S3: a habit of savings really begins early. And it's one 353 00:17:27,440 --> 00:17:29,480 S3: of the reasons why I recommend a budget for everybody, 354 00:17:29,480 --> 00:17:33,000 S3: because you can give, save and spend. You know, you 355 00:17:33,000 --> 00:17:35,459 S3: can give some away. You can save some and you 356 00:17:35,460 --> 00:17:37,220 S3: can spend some. And then when you have that budget 357 00:17:37,220 --> 00:17:39,740 S3: and you're doing those three things, you could say, well, I've, 358 00:17:39,900 --> 00:17:44,179 S3: I've allocated this much money to social activity. So I 359 00:17:44,180 --> 00:17:46,500 S3: don't have to feel guilty about spending it there because 360 00:17:46,500 --> 00:17:48,979 S3: that's what it's there for. Yeah. That's why I would 361 00:17:48,980 --> 00:17:49,660 S3: have a budget. 362 00:17:49,700 --> 00:17:53,980 S1: Exactly right. And so at the core of everything, financially, 363 00:17:53,980 --> 00:17:56,220 S1: once we understand God owns it all and we're stewards, 364 00:17:56,220 --> 00:17:58,380 S1: which is a high calling, we have a spending plan 365 00:17:58,380 --> 00:18:00,899 S1: because we have to live within our means. It's the 366 00:18:00,900 --> 00:18:04,100 S1: key to every financial success. All right, here's the next one. 367 00:18:04,140 --> 00:18:08,139 S1: Lexi Chamberlain actually asked this question and she said, how 368 00:18:08,140 --> 00:18:11,620 S1: do I pick where I invest? Should I hire someone 369 00:18:11,619 --> 00:18:14,540 S1: to do that for me? And, um, well, let me 370 00:18:14,580 --> 00:18:16,940 S1: let you kick this one off as an investment guy. 371 00:18:17,100 --> 00:18:19,379 S3: Oh, I think it's very important you hire somebody. 372 00:18:20,900 --> 00:18:22,540 S1: But not by us at all. 373 00:18:22,740 --> 00:18:27,020 S3: No, I think the things the younger you are, the 374 00:18:27,020 --> 00:18:29,700 S3: more growth oriented you should be, the more you should 375 00:18:29,700 --> 00:18:33,850 S3: invest in stocks and the things that are creating the 376 00:18:33,850 --> 00:18:36,250 S3: new technologies of today, I think are really important. They're 377 00:18:36,250 --> 00:18:39,609 S3: great investments. Uh, the number one thing when you invest 378 00:18:39,609 --> 00:18:42,130 S3: money is you have to think long term. You can't 379 00:18:42,130 --> 00:18:45,050 S3: invest with what I call your your grocery money. So 380 00:18:45,050 --> 00:18:46,969 S3: if you need the money next week, you shouldn't be 381 00:18:46,970 --> 00:18:50,010 S3: investing that money. And it's got to be in balance too. 382 00:18:50,050 --> 00:18:52,449 S3: So I see people I, I've had people come to 383 00:18:52,490 --> 00:18:55,209 S3: me where they, they haven't quite worked out their budget 384 00:18:55,210 --> 00:18:58,170 S3: yet and they have consumer debt, they have other debts, 385 00:18:58,170 --> 00:19:00,770 S3: but they want to invest. And my my answer to 386 00:19:00,770 --> 00:19:04,210 S3: them is I could I could guarantee you 22% rate 387 00:19:04,210 --> 00:19:06,410 S3: of return right now. Like, wow, how can you do that? 388 00:19:06,450 --> 00:19:08,690 S3: I said, you pay off your credit cards. I think 389 00:19:08,690 --> 00:19:11,970 S3: that's where I would start. So in balance, in measure, 390 00:19:11,970 --> 00:19:15,930 S3: I think investing early and often is a really good idea. 391 00:19:15,930 --> 00:19:18,490 S3: And the younger you are, the more more growth oriented 392 00:19:18,490 --> 00:19:21,850 S3: you could be. And I don't think somebody just starting 393 00:19:21,850 --> 00:19:24,970 S3: out would necessarily need an advisor, but it might be 394 00:19:24,970 --> 00:19:27,409 S3: good to just call somebody like me and say, hey, 395 00:19:27,410 --> 00:19:30,510 S3: could I pick your brain? I would never refuse that 396 00:19:30,510 --> 00:19:32,669 S3: phone call. If somebody was young and they wanted to 397 00:19:32,670 --> 00:19:35,590 S3: come in and just find out about investing. I would 398 00:19:35,590 --> 00:19:37,310 S3: always take that call and take that meeting. 399 00:19:37,350 --> 00:19:39,189 S1: Yeah, I suspect that would be true of any of 400 00:19:39,190 --> 00:19:42,109 S1: the advisors in the area here. And so it's a 401 00:19:42,109 --> 00:19:45,190 S1: great question. I would wholeheartedly agree. I would say, look, 402 00:19:45,190 --> 00:19:48,149 S1: at this season as, first of all, an opportunity just 403 00:19:48,150 --> 00:19:52,790 S1: to grow in your understanding of biblical financial wisdom, the 404 00:19:52,830 --> 00:19:56,389 S1: power of compounding, the importance of living within your means. 405 00:19:56,670 --> 00:19:59,270 S1: All that God's Word has to say about this topic 406 00:19:59,270 --> 00:20:02,270 S1: start small. And I think if you could begin, especially 407 00:20:02,270 --> 00:20:04,429 S1: if you have earned income and you could sock some 408 00:20:04,430 --> 00:20:06,709 S1: money away in a Roth IRA, if you could begin 409 00:20:06,710 --> 00:20:10,790 S1: systematically investing that even in a broad market index and 410 00:20:10,790 --> 00:20:13,910 S1: just do that faithfully over time, you would be amazed 411 00:20:13,910 --> 00:20:16,990 S1: at the power of how that could grow for your future. 412 00:20:16,990 --> 00:20:19,990 S1: But it always begins. Dave, what you said is defining 413 00:20:19,990 --> 00:20:22,310 S1: what is the purpose of this money and what is 414 00:20:22,310 --> 00:20:24,470 S1: the time horizon for it? When am I going to 415 00:20:24,470 --> 00:20:27,710 S1: need it? Because that's ultimately going to determine what you 416 00:20:27,710 --> 00:20:30,340 S1: should consider now. Something that we saw that was really 417 00:20:30,340 --> 00:20:33,860 S1: interesting was during Covid. We had a lot of new 418 00:20:33,859 --> 00:20:36,860 S1: investors coming into the market. People had time, they had 419 00:20:36,859 --> 00:20:40,900 S1: extra money. Unfortunately, they were following a lot of influencers 420 00:20:40,900 --> 00:20:44,580 S1: on social media, though we did a study, this was 421 00:20:44,580 --> 00:20:48,260 S1: really interesting. They found that they did it in 2021, 422 00:20:48,260 --> 00:20:52,060 S1: and they found that 15% of all US stock market 423 00:20:52,060 --> 00:20:57,300 S1: investors began investing in 2020. Wow. Which is a massive number. 424 00:20:57,660 --> 00:21:00,500 S1: And what we're seeing in this next generation, which I love, 425 00:21:00,540 --> 00:21:03,140 S1: is you all are very interested in investing. You're very 426 00:21:03,140 --> 00:21:06,380 S1: interested in using your money. You're interested also in using 427 00:21:06,380 --> 00:21:08,260 S1: it in a way that aligns with who you really 428 00:21:08,260 --> 00:21:10,899 S1: are authentically and making an impact with it, which I 429 00:21:10,900 --> 00:21:14,060 S1: think is amazing. But you've got to be careful because 430 00:21:14,060 --> 00:21:17,300 S1: so many of these influencers and others are talking about 431 00:21:17,300 --> 00:21:20,700 S1: get rich quick strategies, and that's the opposite of what 432 00:21:20,740 --> 00:21:22,780 S1: God's Word talks about. It really is more of a 433 00:21:22,780 --> 00:21:25,740 S1: slow and steady approach. All right. We'll take a few 434 00:21:25,740 --> 00:21:28,320 S1: more questions just around the corner. A lot more to 435 00:21:28,359 --> 00:21:31,520 S1: come here on Faith and finance live. We're live from 436 00:21:31,520 --> 00:21:38,200 S1: Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy in Ohio. Rob Weston, Dave Szafranski 437 00:21:38,240 --> 00:21:41,840 S1: here today. Plus, we've got some listeners and some students 438 00:21:41,840 --> 00:21:44,520 S1: in the room. We've got more to come just around 439 00:21:44,520 --> 00:21:46,919 S1: the corner. Stay with us. We'll be right back. 440 00:21:53,480 --> 00:21:54,080 S5: Good job. 441 00:21:58,160 --> 00:22:00,359 S1: This is Faith and finance live. I'm Rob West and 442 00:22:00,359 --> 00:22:04,000 S1: we're live today from Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy in Ohio. 443 00:22:06,359 --> 00:22:09,320 S1: We've got a great audience here today of students and 444 00:22:09,320 --> 00:22:13,119 S1: Moody Radio listeners. They came out. We're so thrilled to 445 00:22:13,119 --> 00:22:15,320 S1: have them here and on set with me today. Dave 446 00:22:15,359 --> 00:22:19,080 S1: Szafranski Dave is a local advisor, and he's the author 447 00:22:19,080 --> 00:22:21,960 S1: of The Sin of Retirement. And we've been unpacking this 448 00:22:21,960 --> 00:22:26,430 S1: idea of retirement, but also really taking some questions from students, 449 00:22:26,430 --> 00:22:28,790 S1: some that they submitted. And we've actually have one of 450 00:22:28,790 --> 00:22:31,910 S1: the students here in our live studio audience that has 451 00:22:31,910 --> 00:22:34,469 S1: a question for us. And her name is Miriam. Miriam, 452 00:22:34,470 --> 00:22:35,590 S1: great to see you. Go ahead. 453 00:22:36,350 --> 00:22:38,830 S6: Um, in my econ class, I learned that one of 454 00:22:38,830 --> 00:22:42,190 S6: the steps to avoid being in debt in college is 455 00:22:42,190 --> 00:22:45,190 S6: that we should pay everything in cash. Does this mean 456 00:22:45,190 --> 00:22:48,070 S6: that we shouldn't use the credit card at all while 457 00:22:48,070 --> 00:22:51,550 S6: in college? Or are there specific occasions where using a 458 00:22:51,550 --> 00:22:53,550 S6: credit card for a purchase is okay? 459 00:22:53,630 --> 00:22:55,790 S7: I love it, it's a great question. Very practical. 460 00:22:55,790 --> 00:22:56,869 S1: Dave, you want to kick it off? 461 00:22:56,910 --> 00:23:00,310 S3: Yeah, I love, uh, I love staying out of debt 462 00:23:00,710 --> 00:23:03,590 S3: in general, but especially in college, because the cost of 463 00:23:03,590 --> 00:23:08,390 S3: college has skyrocketed far faster than the national inflation rate 464 00:23:08,390 --> 00:23:11,429 S3: over time. And so I think it is important to 465 00:23:11,470 --> 00:23:13,910 S3: pay for as many things as you can with cash 466 00:23:13,950 --> 00:23:16,750 S3: to always be thinking about that debt and the impact 467 00:23:16,750 --> 00:23:18,869 S3: that it's going to have after you get out of college. 468 00:23:18,869 --> 00:23:21,830 S3: What I see a lot today is people are graduating 469 00:23:21,830 --> 00:23:25,420 S3: from college and they have two and three and $400,000 470 00:23:25,420 --> 00:23:28,060 S3: of debt, and this takes years and years to pay off. 471 00:23:28,340 --> 00:23:30,260 S3: It keeps you out of the housing market. It keeps 472 00:23:30,260 --> 00:23:32,780 S3: you from doing a lot of things that I think 473 00:23:33,060 --> 00:23:37,180 S3: God would have us do. But we're burdened by this debt. Now, 474 00:23:37,180 --> 00:23:40,940 S3: your credit cards. I like credit cards as a tool. 475 00:23:40,940 --> 00:23:43,420 S3: They're a great tool. They're just another financial tool that 476 00:23:43,420 --> 00:23:46,619 S3: we use. The problem for a lot of people is 477 00:23:46,619 --> 00:23:49,860 S3: that it tends to master them before they master it. 478 00:23:50,140 --> 00:23:52,420 S3: And so what I would do with a credit card 479 00:23:52,420 --> 00:23:55,820 S3: in college is I would keep my available credit low, 480 00:23:56,220 --> 00:23:58,580 S3: and I would be responsible with that. I might keep 481 00:23:58,580 --> 00:24:02,139 S3: it at 2 or 3 or $500, as that's the 482 00:24:02,140 --> 00:24:04,860 S3: the total amount of credit that you could get. And 483 00:24:04,859 --> 00:24:07,420 S3: when you're responsible with that, if you think it's appropriate, 484 00:24:07,420 --> 00:24:09,580 S3: if you and you're in coordination with your parents or 485 00:24:09,580 --> 00:24:12,660 S3: other people, I might raise that. But I would try 486 00:24:12,660 --> 00:24:15,260 S3: and keep it as low as possible because it really isn't. 487 00:24:15,540 --> 00:24:17,699 S3: When we see people with credit card debt, it's the 488 00:24:17,700 --> 00:24:19,420 S3: first thing that we have to figure out a way 489 00:24:19,420 --> 00:24:21,300 S3: to pay off, and it takes a long time. 490 00:24:21,340 --> 00:24:25,080 S1: Yeah, I would agree. I think better to avoid it early, 491 00:24:25,080 --> 00:24:27,440 S1: but it's something that will actually help you later. Remember, 492 00:24:27,440 --> 00:24:29,600 S1: credit cards aren't the problem, it's the way we use them. 493 00:24:30,000 --> 00:24:34,480 S1: And so if we're using it to facilitate lifestyle spending, 494 00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:38,760 S1: so spending on things that we enjoy, but beyond what 495 00:24:38,760 --> 00:24:41,600 S1: we actually have money to pay for, that's really dangerous. 496 00:24:41,600 --> 00:24:45,160 S1: Those balances will grow quickly. The interest rates are very high. 497 00:24:45,400 --> 00:24:48,000 S1: That compounding effect we talked about that works for you 498 00:24:48,000 --> 00:24:51,280 S1: with investments. It works against you with credit cards. And 499 00:24:51,280 --> 00:24:53,879 S1: so that's why I would go really slow. Better to 500 00:24:53,920 --> 00:24:56,920 S1: use probably a debit card. Get used to living on 501 00:24:56,920 --> 00:25:00,200 S1: a budget within your means, not spending money you don't have. 502 00:25:00,240 --> 00:25:03,600 S1: Now as you get close to graduating probably a year out, 503 00:25:03,600 --> 00:25:06,040 S1: you're probably going to want to have a credit card. 504 00:25:06,040 --> 00:25:08,400 S1: It could be what's called a secured card, meaning you 505 00:25:08,400 --> 00:25:10,360 S1: put some money on deposit with the bank and then 506 00:25:10,359 --> 00:25:12,280 S1: they give you a credit card because that's going to 507 00:25:12,280 --> 00:25:14,960 S1: help you build credit. So when you go to get 508 00:25:14,960 --> 00:25:19,240 S1: your first apartment, get a job, maybe someday needing to 509 00:25:19,280 --> 00:25:21,630 S1: borrow money for a car as long as it fits 510 00:25:21,630 --> 00:25:23,990 S1: in your budget, that credit score is going to be 511 00:25:23,990 --> 00:25:27,470 S1: helpful to you, but it probably is not as important 512 00:25:27,470 --> 00:25:30,790 S1: as you learning the good money management skills early, and 513 00:25:30,790 --> 00:25:32,989 S1: I think that's best done without a credit card. But 514 00:25:32,990 --> 00:25:35,669 S1: it's a great question, I appreciate it. Uh, Dave and 515 00:25:35,670 --> 00:25:37,429 S1: I were just talking during the break about one of 516 00:25:37,430 --> 00:25:40,989 S1: the other phenomenons that's happening with this generation, and that 517 00:25:40,990 --> 00:25:43,750 S1: is the rise of sports betting. You know, we're seeing 518 00:25:43,750 --> 00:25:45,830 S1: it all over the place. I mean, we just had 519 00:25:45,830 --> 00:25:48,710 S1: the Super Bowl recently, and I can't think of how 520 00:25:48,710 --> 00:25:53,149 S1: many sports betting ads there were. And it's becoming normalized. 521 00:25:53,190 --> 00:25:56,030 S1: I mean, we're seeing the odds on a typical ESPN 522 00:25:56,070 --> 00:25:59,909 S1: game really problematic. I think when we look to God's Word, 523 00:26:00,030 --> 00:26:02,990 S1: although you won't find it specifically in the Bible, what 524 00:26:02,990 --> 00:26:05,670 S1: you will see is the idea that get rich quick 525 00:26:05,670 --> 00:26:09,430 S1: is something we should stay away from that. Anything that, uh, 526 00:26:09,470 --> 00:26:12,990 S1: you know, is odds based, I think we ought to 527 00:26:13,030 --> 00:26:16,510 S1: stay away from, you know, we're money managers of God's resources, 528 00:26:16,510 --> 00:26:18,470 S1: and we have to think about what's the best way 529 00:26:18,470 --> 00:26:22,530 S1: to use that money betting with that money, is not it? 530 00:26:22,530 --> 00:26:24,730 S1: Because remember, a lot of people say, well, wait a minute, 531 00:26:24,730 --> 00:26:27,290 S1: isn't that all investing is? Know when I'm investing, I'm 532 00:26:27,290 --> 00:26:31,170 S1: putting capital into a real business that provides goods and 533 00:26:31,170 --> 00:26:34,209 S1: services for human flourishing. That's not what we're doing with 534 00:26:34,210 --> 00:26:36,290 S1: sports betting. Completely the opposite. 535 00:26:36,330 --> 00:26:39,649 S3: Well, the stock market is up about 81% of the time. 536 00:26:39,650 --> 00:26:42,010 S3: If you took those odds to Vegas, they would escort 537 00:26:42,010 --> 00:26:43,770 S3: you to the county line and ask you not to 538 00:26:43,770 --> 00:26:46,330 S3: come back. That's right. So investing is very different. And 539 00:26:46,330 --> 00:26:50,890 S3: I you know, in the past, the way betting used 540 00:26:50,890 --> 00:26:52,850 S3: to be is you would say, well, I think that 541 00:26:52,850 --> 00:26:55,370 S3: this team is going to win. And so somebody would 542 00:26:55,410 --> 00:26:57,210 S3: bet on that. Now you can bet on the third 543 00:26:57,210 --> 00:26:59,729 S3: pitch of the fourth inning. Is it a ball or 544 00:26:59,730 --> 00:27:02,930 S3: a strike. So I think as this expands and it grows, 545 00:27:02,930 --> 00:27:06,850 S3: I think it brings a nature to sports that we're 546 00:27:06,850 --> 00:27:08,890 S3: not going to like long term. You're seeing a lot 547 00:27:08,890 --> 00:27:11,649 S3: of players get caught up in this where a pitcher 548 00:27:11,650 --> 00:27:14,689 S3: can say, for instance, well, the first pitch of the 549 00:27:14,690 --> 00:27:17,969 S3: third inning isn't going to decide the the baseball game. 550 00:27:18,040 --> 00:27:19,800 S3: so I could throw a pitch and make money off 551 00:27:19,800 --> 00:27:22,240 S3: of it. And we've seen that here in Cleveland happen, 552 00:27:22,240 --> 00:27:24,480 S3: and people are in a lot of trouble because of this. 553 00:27:24,840 --> 00:27:28,200 S3: And it creates an environment that I think is unhealthy 554 00:27:28,200 --> 00:27:32,679 S3: for believers. I just don't think that spending our money 555 00:27:32,680 --> 00:27:35,960 S3: on prop bets or betting in general, is really where 556 00:27:35,960 --> 00:27:37,640 S3: we're supposed to be spending our money. 557 00:27:37,680 --> 00:27:40,040 S1: Yeah, we also have to look at just what the 558 00:27:40,040 --> 00:27:43,000 S1: industry is promoting and the fallout of it as well. 559 00:27:43,040 --> 00:27:44,760 S1: I mean, there's a lot of people, a lot of 560 00:27:44,760 --> 00:27:48,199 S1: carnage in the wake of this industry because it's predatory 561 00:27:48,200 --> 00:27:49,240 S1: by its very nature. 562 00:27:49,280 --> 00:27:52,879 S3: Exactly. And the when I, you know, the betting sites 563 00:27:52,880 --> 00:27:55,119 S3: are all colorful and you go, if you've ever been 564 00:27:55,119 --> 00:27:57,520 S3: into a casino, you see these bright lights and bells 565 00:27:57,520 --> 00:28:00,120 S3: and whistles, and they're attracting people to it. And I 566 00:28:00,119 --> 00:28:02,600 S3: know some people say, well, that's my leisure. I spend 567 00:28:02,600 --> 00:28:05,040 S3: my leisure time there and, and I spend my leisure 568 00:28:05,040 --> 00:28:09,320 S3: time in other places. Still costs money. It just feels 569 00:28:09,320 --> 00:28:11,760 S3: skeevy to me. I just don't like it. And I 570 00:28:11,760 --> 00:28:14,280 S3: know we can't say. Well, in this verse it says, 571 00:28:14,280 --> 00:28:17,139 S3: don't bet your money, but I There's a lot of 572 00:28:17,140 --> 00:28:18,699 S3: things like that in the Bible, Rob, that we can 573 00:28:18,700 --> 00:28:20,540 S3: look at and say, you know, this just doesn't feel 574 00:28:20,540 --> 00:28:22,500 S3: right and I don't want to participate in it. 575 00:28:22,500 --> 00:28:25,420 S1: Yeah, I think that's exactly right. Uh, Shane Cook asked 576 00:28:25,420 --> 00:28:28,100 S1: this question. He's a student here. He said, how could 577 00:28:28,100 --> 00:28:31,659 S1: college loans affect my future? And are they inherently something 578 00:28:31,660 --> 00:28:33,860 S1: to be avoided? And here's what I would say. You know, 579 00:28:33,900 --> 00:28:37,900 S1: as you're thinking about preparing to start as a future adult, 580 00:28:38,180 --> 00:28:40,460 S1: you would be much better off if you could avoid 581 00:28:40,460 --> 00:28:43,260 S1: loans altogether. And I would certainly encourage you to take 582 00:28:43,260 --> 00:28:46,660 S1: that approach. Um, my wife grew up in a single 583 00:28:46,660 --> 00:28:48,860 S1: parent home. Her mom made it clear to her, if 584 00:28:48,860 --> 00:28:50,260 S1: you're going to go to college, you're going to have 585 00:28:50,260 --> 00:28:52,420 S1: to pay for it. She worked really hard. They turned 586 00:28:52,420 --> 00:28:57,260 S1: their living room into a college application factory. They applied 587 00:28:57,260 --> 00:29:01,140 S1: for hundreds of them. She actually funded her entire education 588 00:29:01,140 --> 00:29:05,860 S1: through scholarships and grants. I was a resident assistant, got 589 00:29:05,860 --> 00:29:08,620 S1: a part time job on campus to cover some of 590 00:29:08,620 --> 00:29:11,020 S1: my costs. I mean, there are other ways to pay 591 00:29:11,020 --> 00:29:13,580 S1: for college. Some choose to go to a community college 592 00:29:13,580 --> 00:29:16,210 S1: just to keep costs low for the first couple of years. 593 00:29:16,210 --> 00:29:19,250 S1: So I would say just because it's available to you, 594 00:29:19,290 --> 00:29:21,890 S1: don't just automatically accept that that's the way you're going 595 00:29:21,930 --> 00:29:24,850 S1: to pay for school. Look for other ways. And the 596 00:29:24,850 --> 00:29:27,290 S1: key would be, how do I know that I'm going 597 00:29:27,330 --> 00:29:29,250 S1: to have the ability to pay it back in a 598 00:29:29,250 --> 00:29:32,010 S1: reasonable time period when I get out? And if you 599 00:29:32,050 --> 00:29:34,890 S1: could avoid that pressure, especially as you're just starting out, 600 00:29:34,930 --> 00:29:36,810 S1: certainly much better. But any thoughts? 601 00:29:36,850 --> 00:29:39,770 S3: Yeah, I joined the Army to pay for college and 602 00:29:39,770 --> 00:29:42,770 S3: I loved it. I loved the the US Army. I 603 00:29:42,810 --> 00:29:45,290 S3: missed it when I left, but the thing that I 604 00:29:45,290 --> 00:29:47,530 S3: like most about it is they paid all of my 605 00:29:47,530 --> 00:29:50,530 S3: college and my student loans back, so I graduated with 606 00:29:50,530 --> 00:29:54,050 S3: no debt. I think when you think about college, you're 607 00:29:54,050 --> 00:29:56,810 S3: investing in yourself. You're investing in a promise of the future, 608 00:29:56,810 --> 00:29:58,610 S3: that you're going to have a skill set in an 609 00:29:58,610 --> 00:30:01,770 S3: industry that's going to provide a living for you. So 610 00:30:02,130 --> 00:30:04,690 S3: one of the things that I encourage families to do 611 00:30:04,810 --> 00:30:07,850 S3: is exert some influence over your college aged students. Say, look, 612 00:30:07,890 --> 00:30:11,530 S3: this the degree that you want to achieve is not 613 00:30:11,730 --> 00:30:14,880 S3: a degree that's going to support a lifestyle or pay 614 00:30:14,880 --> 00:30:16,360 S3: back these loans. So I think you have to be 615 00:30:16,360 --> 00:30:18,600 S3: careful when you go to college. What am I going 616 00:30:18,640 --> 00:30:19,920 S3: to get a degree and how am I going to 617 00:30:19,920 --> 00:30:22,120 S3: pay for it. And I would avoid loans as much 618 00:30:22,120 --> 00:30:22,960 S3: as possible. 619 00:30:23,000 --> 00:30:25,200 S1: Yeah, I think that's great advice. All right. We're going 620 00:30:25,240 --> 00:30:27,400 S1: to take our final break of the day. When we 621 00:30:27,440 --> 00:30:29,520 S1: come back, we'll have one more segment. We've got some 622 00:30:29,520 --> 00:30:32,840 S1: great questions coming up, including I want to make a 623 00:30:32,880 --> 00:30:35,680 S1: lot of money. Is that okay? We'll tackle that question 624 00:30:35,680 --> 00:30:38,840 S1: from Margaret Lane here just after the break. We're live 625 00:30:38,840 --> 00:30:42,960 S1: from Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy in Ohio with a great 626 00:30:42,960 --> 00:30:46,640 S1: studio audience. Dave Szafranski is here, I'm Rob West. We'll 627 00:30:46,640 --> 00:30:49,400 S1: be back with much more just around the corner. Stick around. 628 00:30:59,160 --> 00:31:01,480 S1: This is Faith and finance live. I'm Rob West. We're 629 00:31:01,480 --> 00:31:06,400 S1: live from Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy today in Ohio. That's right. 630 00:31:06,840 --> 00:31:09,160 S1: We've got a live studio audience. We've got some moody 631 00:31:09,160 --> 00:31:13,060 S1: radio listeners. We've got some students here from CBC, and 632 00:31:13,540 --> 00:31:16,220 S1: we're glad that you're along with us as well. We're 633 00:31:16,300 --> 00:31:20,620 S1: not taking questions from callers today. We're taking questions actually 634 00:31:20,660 --> 00:31:24,580 S1: from students that submitted these questions throughout the day today. 635 00:31:24,580 --> 00:31:26,940 S1: And one of them, by the way, Dave Szafranski is here. 636 00:31:26,940 --> 00:31:30,460 S1: Dave is an advisor here in the area. And Dave 637 00:31:30,460 --> 00:31:32,660 S1: and I were talking earlier about his book, The Sin 638 00:31:32,700 --> 00:31:35,220 S1: of Retirement. He's sticking around to help me answer some 639 00:31:35,220 --> 00:31:37,860 S1: of these questions. But Dave, I love this one. Uh, 640 00:31:37,860 --> 00:31:41,380 S1: that came in from Margaret. She says, is it wrong 641 00:31:41,420 --> 00:31:43,500 S1: to want to make a lot of money for the 642 00:31:43,500 --> 00:31:46,220 S1: right reasons? For example, I want to make a lot 643 00:31:46,220 --> 00:31:48,900 S1: of money because I want to be financially secure, and 644 00:31:48,900 --> 00:31:51,900 S1: because there's a lot of good I can do with 645 00:31:51,900 --> 00:31:55,580 S1: significant finances. I don't think I would want a lavish lifestyle. 646 00:31:55,580 --> 00:32:00,380 S1: I just want security and opportunities for giving. Is that wrong? 647 00:32:00,420 --> 00:32:01,140 S1: What are your thoughts? 648 00:32:01,180 --> 00:32:04,580 S3: Um, well, there's a there's a proverb about, uh, not 649 00:32:04,620 --> 00:32:07,420 S3: wearing yourself out to get rich. And I think the 650 00:32:07,420 --> 00:32:10,020 S3: perspective on money is really important. When I first got 651 00:32:10,020 --> 00:32:13,090 S3: into business, Rob, I. I wanted to be rich. I 652 00:32:13,210 --> 00:32:15,210 S3: saw everybody around me with money. It was the most 653 00:32:15,210 --> 00:32:20,650 S3: important thing to me. I worked six nights a week, practically, 654 00:32:20,650 --> 00:32:22,370 S3: and it came to the point where my wife was 655 00:32:22,370 --> 00:32:25,130 S3: going to leave me, and I was sitting in a 656 00:32:25,130 --> 00:32:27,450 S3: counseling appointment with her. I think we put that counselor's 657 00:32:27,450 --> 00:32:31,250 S3: kid through school and he said, what are you willing 658 00:32:31,290 --> 00:32:34,650 S3: to do? I said, I'm willing to do anything. And 659 00:32:34,930 --> 00:32:37,850 S3: my wife said, give me your calendar. And I had 660 00:32:37,850 --> 00:32:39,930 S3: to change everything that I was doing at that point. 661 00:32:39,930 --> 00:32:44,930 S3: I had to I had to stop working to, you know, endlessly. And, uh, 662 00:32:45,330 --> 00:32:47,730 S3: and I had to take my wife's advice. I had 663 00:32:47,730 --> 00:32:50,170 S3: to hear her. And I did that, and I, I 664 00:32:50,210 --> 00:32:53,890 S3: stopped working so much. And God blessed my business after 665 00:32:54,290 --> 00:32:57,010 S3: I stopped just thinking about money. I was raising a family. 666 00:32:57,010 --> 00:32:59,090 S3: I had to be there for them. It wasn't just 667 00:32:59,090 --> 00:33:01,370 S3: about money. So I think when you think about money, 668 00:33:02,210 --> 00:33:04,370 S3: it's really easy to get caught up in the numbers. 669 00:33:04,370 --> 00:33:06,930 S3: It is because we see so much wealth around us. 670 00:33:06,930 --> 00:33:09,190 S3: We see it online, we see it. I was just 671 00:33:09,190 --> 00:33:12,750 S3: in Miami. There was a Lamborghini on every corner, and 672 00:33:12,990 --> 00:33:15,430 S3: it's easy to get caught up in that. But we 673 00:33:15,470 --> 00:33:18,310 S3: want to do it with God's plan in mind. And 674 00:33:18,310 --> 00:33:21,350 S3: that's what I would be seeking first one. Is it 675 00:33:21,350 --> 00:33:23,350 S3: appropriate what we're doing to get the money? Are we 676 00:33:23,390 --> 00:33:25,670 S3: working too much? Is it the only thing we think about? 677 00:33:25,670 --> 00:33:29,630 S3: Are we driving towards that end only? And I don't 678 00:33:29,630 --> 00:33:31,390 S3: think it's wrong to make a lot of money. I 679 00:33:31,390 --> 00:33:33,550 S3: think we can bless a lot of people, but God 680 00:33:33,550 --> 00:33:36,150 S3: is going to bless a few people like that, who 681 00:33:36,150 --> 00:33:39,710 S3: he knows can handle it and be faithful in the 682 00:33:39,710 --> 00:33:43,190 S3: small things. First, prove yourself early. If you're faithful in 683 00:33:43,190 --> 00:33:45,469 S3: those things, God will bless us with more over time. 684 00:33:45,470 --> 00:33:49,230 S1: I think that's well said. Clearly, Scripture gives both an 685 00:33:49,230 --> 00:33:52,350 S1: encouragement and a warning here. Let's start with the warning. 686 00:33:52,390 --> 00:33:54,510 S1: You know there's plenty of warning. We see this in 687 00:33:54,550 --> 00:33:58,270 S1: first Timothy. Uh, on setting our hearts to become rich. 688 00:33:58,430 --> 00:34:01,350 S1: We've got to be careful there. Uh, we're reminded that 689 00:34:01,390 --> 00:34:04,310 S1: those who have wealth, though, are called to be generous, 690 00:34:04,310 --> 00:34:07,740 S1: and I think that's the opportunity. So the question isn't 691 00:34:07,740 --> 00:34:12,380 S1: the amount, it's the affection. Where is our affection? What 692 00:34:12,380 --> 00:34:15,620 S1: is our ultimate treasure? Why do I want it, and 693 00:34:15,620 --> 00:34:18,860 S1: what am I ultimately trusting in? So if your desire 694 00:34:18,860 --> 00:34:21,779 S1: is rooted, I think, like Margaret has already expressed here, 695 00:34:21,780 --> 00:34:23,739 S1: and a desire to be able to bless others and 696 00:34:23,739 --> 00:34:27,540 S1: be a part of God's activity and advance the kingdom, great. 697 00:34:27,820 --> 00:34:30,460 S1: But let's be careful on our heart posture. You remember 698 00:34:30,460 --> 00:34:33,940 S1: some of the folks that Jesus celebrated in God's Word. 699 00:34:33,980 --> 00:34:36,739 S1: Remember the poor widow? She gave her two copper coins. 700 00:34:36,739 --> 00:34:39,420 S1: She's probably the most famous giver in the New Testament. 701 00:34:39,420 --> 00:34:41,500 S1: We don't know her name, but we know she gave 702 00:34:41,540 --> 00:34:44,180 S1: out of her poverty. She gave not out of her 703 00:34:44,180 --> 00:34:47,900 S1: safety net, but she gave everything. And Jesus celebrates that. 704 00:34:47,900 --> 00:34:51,460 S1: And so we see that heart, posture and motivation. I think, 705 00:34:51,460 --> 00:34:54,100 S1: for the security piece of Margaret's question, I think this 706 00:34:54,100 --> 00:34:57,259 S1: is an important idea because, you know, it's wise to 707 00:34:57,300 --> 00:35:03,580 S1: desire stability, being able to meet needs, saving prudently, giving faithfully. 708 00:35:03,580 --> 00:35:08,200 S1: But I think there's a difference between stability and misplaced trust. 709 00:35:08,600 --> 00:35:12,600 S1: And if you're ultimately trusting in your portfolio or your 710 00:35:12,600 --> 00:35:16,319 S1: bank account, that's misplaced trust. God is our provider, and 711 00:35:16,320 --> 00:35:18,600 S1: ultimately we should depend on him for everything. 712 00:35:18,800 --> 00:35:21,200 S3: That word stuck out to me when you read the 713 00:35:21,200 --> 00:35:24,040 S3: question about security. Do we are we going to trust 714 00:35:24,040 --> 00:35:26,880 S3: that God is going to provide everything we need, even 715 00:35:26,880 --> 00:35:30,920 S3: if it's not exactly what we want? And that security 716 00:35:30,920 --> 00:35:34,399 S3: is such a double edged sword because we I have 717 00:35:34,400 --> 00:35:37,040 S3: to be secure in that the Lord is going to 718 00:35:37,040 --> 00:35:40,320 S3: provide for me. That's where my security lies, not in money. 719 00:35:40,360 --> 00:35:43,000 S1: Absolutely. It's a great question though. This one comes from 720 00:35:43,000 --> 00:35:45,480 S1: David Parker. He says, is it sinful not to pay 721 00:35:45,480 --> 00:35:48,960 S1: a church tithe? What if Christians are financially struggling and 722 00:35:48,960 --> 00:35:53,960 S1: can't afford 10%? Are tithes pays before or after taxes, 723 00:35:53,960 --> 00:35:56,359 S1: I love that. Uh, you know, it's a question we 724 00:35:56,360 --> 00:35:59,479 S1: get often, uh, around the tithe. We actually did a 725 00:35:59,520 --> 00:36:02,280 S1: deep dive on the tithe and a couple of issues 726 00:36:02,280 --> 00:36:05,750 S1: ago in our magazine. Faithful steward. I think, first of all, 727 00:36:05,750 --> 00:36:08,710 S1: it's important to get the motivation right. It probably is 728 00:36:08,750 --> 00:36:11,510 S1: very similar to the last question, in the sense that 729 00:36:11,670 --> 00:36:15,430 S1: giving is never meant to be guilt driven. It's never 730 00:36:15,430 --> 00:36:18,590 S1: meant to be transactional. When we look at God's Word, 731 00:36:18,590 --> 00:36:22,270 S1: we see that we're to give not out of obligation 732 00:36:22,270 --> 00:36:26,310 S1: or compulsion, because God loves. What a cheerful giver, right? 733 00:36:26,310 --> 00:36:30,190 S1: So it's our heart posture at the end of the day. Now, 734 00:36:30,190 --> 00:36:33,069 S1: the 10% was a part of the Mosaic law. Now 735 00:36:33,070 --> 00:36:36,270 S1: there was actually multiple tithes involved. So, you know, one 736 00:36:36,270 --> 00:36:38,469 S1: of them was every third year, two of them were 737 00:36:38,469 --> 00:36:41,350 S1: every year it was about 23 and a third percent, 738 00:36:41,469 --> 00:36:44,230 S1: because you had the the tithe for the Levites, you 739 00:36:44,230 --> 00:36:46,790 S1: had the the festival tithe, you had the tithe for 740 00:36:46,790 --> 00:36:51,270 S1: the poor. But we're not Old Testament Israel. And so 741 00:36:51,270 --> 00:36:53,189 S1: how do we approach it? And I think it's this 742 00:36:53,190 --> 00:36:57,270 S1: idea that we're giving as a response to the grace 743 00:36:57,270 --> 00:37:00,350 S1: that's been extended to us. It's a get to, not 744 00:37:00,350 --> 00:37:04,299 S1: a have to. God's not an accountant. He wants our hearts. 745 00:37:04,300 --> 00:37:06,460 S1: And so we start with giving to our local church. 746 00:37:06,460 --> 00:37:09,420 S1: And I think that's clearly affirmed in Scripture. But it's 747 00:37:09,420 --> 00:37:13,820 S1: all about the motivation and not really the number as much. 748 00:37:14,420 --> 00:37:18,460 S3: I've always thought that tithing is never a condition of 749 00:37:18,460 --> 00:37:22,379 S3: the checkbook. It's a condition of our hearts. And giving 750 00:37:22,380 --> 00:37:24,820 S3: is a way to bless other people. And I firmly 751 00:37:24,820 --> 00:37:28,140 S3: believe we. I am called to give to my local church. 752 00:37:28,140 --> 00:37:30,100 S3: That's where I get fed. Those are the people that 753 00:37:30,100 --> 00:37:33,180 S3: love me. Those are the people that hold me accountable 754 00:37:33,180 --> 00:37:36,180 S3: from time to time. But I still give. Um, it's 755 00:37:36,180 --> 00:37:38,379 S3: a condition of the heart we want to give. We 756 00:37:38,380 --> 00:37:41,820 S3: want to have that opportunity to bless other people. And 757 00:37:42,060 --> 00:37:44,219 S3: I get the 10% question all the time. I think 758 00:37:44,219 --> 00:37:46,140 S3: it's a great place to start. I agree, it's a 759 00:37:46,140 --> 00:37:50,500 S3: great place to start. But what about blessing a missionary someplace? 760 00:37:50,500 --> 00:37:53,700 S3: What about, uh, a benevolent fund for somebody at your 761 00:37:53,700 --> 00:37:56,259 S3: church that maybe can't make a bill this month? I 762 00:37:56,260 --> 00:37:58,339 S3: think these are things that God is going to lay 763 00:37:58,340 --> 00:38:01,719 S3: on our hearts to continually be giving and always be 764 00:38:01,719 --> 00:38:02,480 S3: thinking about it. 765 00:38:02,480 --> 00:38:04,520 S1: Yeah, I love what Randy Alcorn, the author, says he 766 00:38:04,520 --> 00:38:07,080 S1: calls the tithe the training wheels of giving. So it's 767 00:38:07,080 --> 00:38:09,359 S1: not the ending point. It's the beginning point. So we 768 00:38:09,360 --> 00:38:13,239 S1: give sacrificially. We give proportionately. So that's this idea. We 769 00:38:13,239 --> 00:38:15,440 S1: would take a portion of what God has entrusted to 770 00:38:15,440 --> 00:38:18,640 S1: us and return it to him. Because remember, everything belongs 771 00:38:18,640 --> 00:38:22,880 S1: to him and he allows us to participate in his activity. 772 00:38:23,280 --> 00:38:25,399 S1: It's not that he needs our money. He owns the 773 00:38:25,400 --> 00:38:28,239 S1: cattle on a thousand hills. It all belongs to him. 774 00:38:28,239 --> 00:38:30,359 S1: But through our giving is a way for us to 775 00:38:30,400 --> 00:38:32,719 S1: say we're going to order our finances in such a 776 00:38:32,719 --> 00:38:36,400 S1: way that we have the ability to be involved in 777 00:38:36,440 --> 00:38:40,360 S1: the work of God in his redemptive purposes, whether that's 778 00:38:40,360 --> 00:38:43,040 S1: somebody on your path that you come across that is 779 00:38:43,040 --> 00:38:46,200 S1: just has an unexpected need that you're able to respond to, 780 00:38:46,360 --> 00:38:49,319 S1: or something more intentional where you give to a ministry 781 00:38:49,680 --> 00:38:53,439 S1: or your local church with great intention building it into 782 00:38:53,440 --> 00:38:57,000 S1: your plan. In either case, it starts with why stewardship 783 00:38:57,000 --> 00:39:00,590 S1: and money management? And then it's a privilege. It's not pressure. 784 00:39:00,790 --> 00:39:04,230 S1: It's an opportunity for you to be aligned with God's 785 00:39:04,230 --> 00:39:07,350 S1: purposes through our generosity. I think it's one of the 786 00:39:07,350 --> 00:39:10,990 S1: big ideas of stewardship. Ron Blue calls it, uh, the 787 00:39:10,989 --> 00:39:13,990 S1: way that we break the grip of money over our lives. 788 00:39:13,989 --> 00:39:18,229 S3: Exactly. People will often ask me, how can I make 789 00:39:18,270 --> 00:39:21,509 S3: sure that money isn't controlling me? I say, well, give 790 00:39:21,510 --> 00:39:22,750 S3: it away and see what happens. 791 00:39:22,790 --> 00:39:25,589 S1: Yeah, yeah, you've got to have the posture of an 792 00:39:25,590 --> 00:39:29,350 S1: open hand in order to do any giving whatsoever. Uh, 793 00:39:29,350 --> 00:39:32,830 S1: last question. This comes from Avery quickly. Avery says as 794 00:39:32,830 --> 00:39:34,910 S1: a high school student with a part time job, how 795 00:39:34,910 --> 00:39:37,910 S1: can I align my finances with what the Bible says? 796 00:39:37,950 --> 00:39:40,710 S1: And I would just say, start with a basic rhythm, 797 00:39:40,870 --> 00:39:45,469 S1: give first, save, and then have some left for spending. 798 00:39:45,790 --> 00:39:49,430 S1: God reminds us, ultimately everything comes from him. But we're 799 00:39:49,430 --> 00:39:52,109 S1: to have a plan, not because we want to do 800 00:39:52,110 --> 00:39:53,830 S1: it all in our own power. We want to let 801 00:39:53,830 --> 00:39:56,629 S1: him guide and direct that plan. But what's exciting is 802 00:39:56,630 --> 00:39:59,530 S1: that God's Word gives us these principles that we can 803 00:39:59,530 --> 00:40:03,290 S1: take away and apply to our financial lives. Living within 804 00:40:03,290 --> 00:40:07,290 S1: our means. Avoiding debt because debt mortgages the future. Setting 805 00:40:07,290 --> 00:40:10,850 S1: some long term goals. Because the longer my perspective, the 806 00:40:10,890 --> 00:40:13,330 S1: better the decision I'm going to make right now. Having 807 00:40:13,330 --> 00:40:16,810 S1: some margin, meaning not running everything right up to the edge, 808 00:40:16,810 --> 00:40:20,090 S1: whether that's your schedule or your bank account. Having a 809 00:40:20,090 --> 00:40:23,290 S1: little left over is key. And then giving generously because 810 00:40:23,330 --> 00:40:26,089 S1: giving breaks the grip of money over our lives. If 811 00:40:26,130 --> 00:40:29,089 S1: you just do those five, they sound simple. They're harder 812 00:40:29,090 --> 00:40:31,370 S1: to do in practice. But if you do those five 813 00:40:31,530 --> 00:40:35,450 S1: simple things, you'll put yourself in a position to experience 814 00:40:35,450 --> 00:40:38,090 S1: God's best. What are your final thoughts today for us? 815 00:40:38,130 --> 00:40:39,690 S3: Well, if you do what you just said, you're going 816 00:40:39,730 --> 00:40:41,330 S3: to sleep a lot better too. You're going to get 817 00:40:41,330 --> 00:40:44,089 S3: much better sleep at night. So. And I love when 818 00:40:44,090 --> 00:40:46,850 S3: people think long term because we we tend to live 819 00:40:46,850 --> 00:40:49,609 S3: in a short term society about right now. Uh, the 820 00:40:49,610 --> 00:40:53,410 S3: microwave society and really the best financial decisions we make 821 00:40:53,410 --> 00:40:54,930 S3: are long term financial decisions. 822 00:40:54,969 --> 00:40:57,880 S1: Yeah, no doubt about it. Dave Szafranski has been our 823 00:40:57,880 --> 00:41:00,960 S1: guest today. He's the author of The Sin of Retirement. 824 00:41:01,160 --> 00:41:04,480 S1: I so appreciate your commitment to Moody Radio. You've been 825 00:41:04,520 --> 00:41:08,120 S1: a faithful part of this family for a long, long time. 826 00:41:08,120 --> 00:41:09,160 S1: I know it means a lot to you. 827 00:41:09,520 --> 00:41:11,319 S3: It's been a it's been an honor to be part 828 00:41:11,320 --> 00:41:15,040 S3: of Moody Radio for this many years. And and I 829 00:41:15,040 --> 00:41:17,399 S3: look forward to it. I love Moody Radio. I love 830 00:41:17,400 --> 00:41:20,279 S3: moody in general, and it's built so much into many 831 00:41:20,280 --> 00:41:23,480 S3: people's lives. Uh, thank you for the opportunity. 832 00:41:23,520 --> 00:41:26,800 S1: Absolutely. Well, folks, it's been a delight to be here today. 833 00:41:26,800 --> 00:41:28,799 S1: We've covered a lot of ground. It's been a lot 834 00:41:28,800 --> 00:41:30,680 S1: of fun to meet a lot of listeners here on 835 00:41:30,680 --> 00:41:33,760 S1: the ground. Hopefully we'll be out in your area before 836 00:41:33,760 --> 00:41:35,919 S1: too long. But, you know, at the end of the day, 837 00:41:35,920 --> 00:41:38,080 S1: what we're trying to do here at Faith and Finance 838 00:41:38,080 --> 00:41:41,760 S1: Live is just to encourage you to recognize that it's 839 00:41:41,760 --> 00:41:44,920 S1: a high calling that we enjoy to be money managers 840 00:41:44,920 --> 00:41:47,160 S1: of the King of Kings. And so we want to 841 00:41:47,160 --> 00:41:49,520 S1: be thoughtful about it. We want to look to God's Word. 842 00:41:49,520 --> 00:41:51,960 S1: We want to understand the reason there's so much in 843 00:41:51,960 --> 00:41:55,299 S1: Scripture about this topic is because if something is going 844 00:41:55,340 --> 00:41:58,460 S1: to rival our hearts for first position, it's most often 845 00:41:58,460 --> 00:42:01,100 S1: going to be money. You remember the parable of the sower. 846 00:42:01,140 --> 00:42:03,340 S1: What was it that choked out the word from bearing 847 00:42:03,340 --> 00:42:06,060 S1: the 30, 60, 100 fold return? Among other things, it 848 00:42:06,060 --> 00:42:09,500 S1: was the deceitfulness of riches. We don't want to let 849 00:42:09,500 --> 00:42:11,500 S1: that to be true about us. We want to use 850 00:42:11,500 --> 00:42:13,500 S1: money in a way that we can bring God glory. 851 00:42:13,500 --> 00:42:15,899 S1: We can enjoy it. We can give it away to 852 00:42:15,940 --> 00:42:20,819 S1: bless others and ultimately hear, well done, good and faithful servant. 853 00:42:20,860 --> 00:42:22,940 S1: That's our goal each day. Listen, I couldn't do this 854 00:42:22,940 --> 00:42:26,500 S1: out without my amazing team back in Chicago. Omar and 855 00:42:26,500 --> 00:42:30,540 S1: Tahira here in Ohio, Amy and Chris and everybody at 856 00:42:30,540 --> 00:42:33,500 S1: Faith fi, that makes this possible every day. So thankful 857 00:42:33,500 --> 00:42:37,819 S1: for our host today, Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy, an amazing 858 00:42:37,820 --> 00:42:41,140 S1: school here in Ohio. And thanks to this audience that's 859 00:42:41,140 --> 00:42:45,100 S1: been a part of our broadcast today on behalf of 860 00:42:45,100 --> 00:42:47,419 S1: our entire team, come back and join us next time. 861 00:42:47,420 --> 00:42:48,700 S1: We'll see you then. Bye bye.